The present invention relates to a closure or capping machine of rotary design to cap bottles that have lips on their mouths with closure caps, such as crown closures, crown corks, etc., that are supplied from a magazine via a cap feeding channel that leads therefrom, with the capping being effected via a plurality of closure or capping elements that rotate about a vertical axis of the machine and can each be raised and lowered in a vertical direction. To press and subsequently permanently deform or set the closure caps on the bottle mouths, each of the capping elements is provided with a deforming member accommodated in a capping element part and with a hold-down device that extends centrally through the deforming member and to the region of the lower end of which closure caps are fed via a cap transfer mechanism that is disposed downstream of the feeding channel. Alternatively, each of the capping elements can be provided with a deforming member and a hold-down device that extends centrally through the deforming member, with the deforming member and the hold-down device being movable relative to one another, and with a member of a cap transfer mechanism, which member is disposed downstream of the feeding channel and is driven synchronously with the rotation of the capping elements, transferring a respective one of the closure caps to holding means at the lower end of the hold-down device of each capping element that moves past a transfer position of the cap transfer mechanism.
Capping machines of this type are known (U.S. Pat. No. 3,807,133) and are characterized in particular by a reliable and problem-free manner of operation if the transfer of the individual closure caps to the capping elements, or to the hold-down devices thereof, is effected with the aid of a cap transfer mechanism that is provided with a rotating transfer element. With capping machines of this type, it is also known (U.S. Pat. No. 4,205,502) to provide at the lower region of each capping element a centering member in order in this way to additionally ensure a satisfactory centering of the bottles, and hence a satisfactory closure formation, without damaging the mouths of the bottles.
It is furthermore known (U.S. Pat. No. 4,527,377), with capping machines to undertake cleaning or disinfecting measures, in particular of those elements that come into contact with the mouth region of the bottles as well as with the closure caps during the capping process, in order to obtain, for the contents dispensed into the bottles, an optimum protection against contamination or bacteria (in particular also yeast), and hence an optimum shelf life. To clean the capping elements, cleaning caps or rinsing caps are placed thereon. A drawback of these heretofore known capping machines is that connections for hoses or conduits for supplying and withdrawing the rinsing agent are provided directly on the rinsing cap. This is necessary with the heretofore known capping machines because the rinsing caps are secured on a sleeve-like element of the respective capping element that surrounds the capping element part that is provided with the deforming member; this means a work intensive connection or separation prior to or after a cleaning process. Furthermore, with these heretofore known capping machines, i.e. with the rinsing caps thereof, O-rings are provided that when the rinsing caps are placed on, ensure a separation of the flow paths for the supplied and withdrawn rinsing agent. For this purpose, the O-rings rest either against the underside of the centering member or of the hold-down device of the respective capping element, i.e. against surfaces that similarly must be cleaned. Thus, with these heretofore known capping machines a complete cleaning cannot be provided.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a capping machine that enables a simplified yet improved cleaning of the critical elements and functional parts of the capping machine.